Monthly Archives: April 2013

How to Awaken Your Kundalini Through Shaktipat

Many people want to know how to awaken the Kundalini. And as there are techniques for Kundalini Awakening, most of the techniques are kept secret by masters until the student is ready to receive them.

Here is a very powerful technique for Kundalini Awakening based on a Kriya Yoga technique. This technique will not only awaken the Kundalini energy, moving you towards spiritual enlightenment, it also can improve your health and remove all stress and unhappiness in your life.

This Kriya Technique for Kundalini Awakening is probably one of the easiest ways to enter a blissful state of meditation. It is what would be termed a “purifying technique” as it will purify the energy channels of your body allowing more energy or Shakti to move through.

I will explain the technique in three parts:

The first part of this technique for kundalini awakening is to focus your breath starting at the base of your spine all the way up your spine and out of the top of your head. Do this for the inhale. As you inhale move your focus from the base of your spine, up the spine and out of the top of your head as though your are “breathing up” the energy.

You do not need to imagine anything. This is not about imagination but focus. Focus your breath to move up the spine and out the top of your head.

And the focus should be relaxed. You are not to force anything. You are simply gently suggesting the energy to move in this direction. So do focus the energy up but allow the kundalini energy to move on it’s own without force.

It may seem quite strange to focus your breath where your breath does not go but it is very effective. Breath is energy, “prana.” And simply by focusing the breath in a certain area, the energy moves to that area.

After practicing this for a while, you will start to feel the energy rising. The sensations will be subtle at first but over time can become very blissful. It can almost feel like an orgasm, a rush of bliss moving up your spine.

The second part of this technique for kundalini awakening is it to move the breath down your front as you exhale.

As you exhale, move the breath from the top of your head to the third eye, (located between your eyebrows) then to your throat and then to your heart chakra, located at the center of your chest.

Stop the breath at the center of your chest. And then again, inhale from the base of your spine, repeating the process above.

The third part of this technique for kundalini awakening is to awaken the energy. Because an enlightened teacher would not give this technique without initiating you into this technique. This calls for the teacher to give you shaktipat, to actually awaken your kundalini by touch, chanting or simply by focusing their energy on you.

So to awaken this energy yourself, there is an easy technique but a very important one. And that is to silently repeat the name of an enlightened teacher, Guru or Saint that you feel connected to whether you have met them or not. If you are of a particular religion, you can repeat the name of a saint of that religion. Otherwise, choose an enlightened teacher who you admire.

You can repeat the name as you inhale, and repeat the name as you exhale. The reason for this is that you take on the Shakti (energy) of what you focus on. So simply by repeating the name of an enlightened Guru or Saint, you take on their energy, their state of bliss. This technique is thousands of years old and is still used today because it is so effective.

If this step makes you uncomfortable, you can repeat “METTA” or “SHANTI” (unconditional love and Peace) instead.

Really, you are awakening that which is in you, not something from the outside. But enlightened teachers are the outward manifestation of what is inside you. A Saint or Guru have awakened what you wish also to awaken. So by focusing on their name, you awaken that energy in you. It has nothing to do with them as a personality or body but the energy that naturally radiates from them.

The dakini, in her various guises, serves as each of the Three Roots. She may be a human guru, a vajra master who transmits the Vajrayana teachings to her disciples and joins them in samaya commitments. The wisdom dakini may be a yidam, a meditational deity; female deity yogas such as Vajrayogini are common in Tibetan Buddhism. Or she may be a protector; the wisdom dakinis have special power and responsibility to protect the integrity of oral transmissions[1]

As a key tantric figure the dakini also appears in other forms of tantric Buddhism such as the Japanese Shingon school from where she disseminated into Japanese culture, evolving into Dakini-ten and becoming linked to the kitsune iconography. The origins of the dakini figure are uncertain but she continues to this day as a part of Indian folklore, generally in wrathful forms, and remains a part of Hindu tantra.

In Tibetan Buddhism

Classes of dakiniAlthough dakini figures appear in Hinduism and in the Bön tradition, dakinis occur most notably in Vajrayana Buddhism and play a particular role in Tibetan Buddhism. There the dakini, generally of volatile or wrathful temperament, acts somewhat as spiritual muse (or inspirational thoughtforms) for spiritual practice. Dakinis are energetic beings in female form, evocative of the movement of energy in space. In this context, the sky or space indicates shunyata, the insubstantiality of all phenomena, which is, at the same time, the pure potentiality for all possible manifestations.

In Dzogchen

When considered as a stage on the Vajrayana Path, the dakini is the final stages: the first is the guru, which corresponds to the initial realization of the true condition of reality, as this is introduced by the guru in the empowerment, if the disciple obtains what the Inner Tantras call peyi yeshe (dpe yi ye shes) o the clarity of shunyata. The second is the devata, which corresponds to the meditation insofar as the devata is the method used for developing the state discovered in the initial realization of the true condition of reality. The third stage is the dakini insofar as the dakini is the source of the activities based on the realization of the guru and the meditation of the devata.

In Dzogchen these three correspond to tawa (lta ba), gompa (sgom pa) and chöpa (spyod pa): the first is the direct vision of the true nature of reality rather than an intellectual view of reality, as is the case with the term in other vehicles; the second is the continuity of this vision in sessions of meditation; and the third is the continuity of this vision in everyday activities. As a tantric practice, imperfections are utilised to make the vision uninterrupted. As the Base, the dakinis are the energies of life; as the Path, they are the activities of advanced practitioners; as the Fruit, they are the actionless activities of realized Masters.[3]

In Anuttarayoga Tantra

Being associated with energy in all its functions, dakinis are linked with the revelation of the Anuttarayoga Tantras, which represent the path of transformation, whereby the energy of negative emotions or kleshas, called poisons, is transformed into the luminous energy of enlightened awareness yielding the most profound experience of clear light. Thubten Yeshe explains:

When the completion stage practices have been mastered and we have gained control over our subtle energy winds and so forth, there will come a time when the dakas and dakinis will come… physically embracing such a consort is necessary to bring all the pervading energy winds into the central channel, a prerequisite for opening the heart center and experiencing the profoundest level of clear light.[4]

Daka

There is some disagreement amongst Western scholars as to the meaning of the term daka. Some see it as the same as a dakini but in its male embodiment, and thus to be the partner of a female practitioner or yogini, or to identify a daka as the consort of a dakini. However in consort yoga, the consort of a dakini is a yogi. For example, the most famous instance of consort yoga in Tibetan tantra involved its founder, the Indian MahasiddhaPadmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal, a Tibetan princess and yogini. Padma Sambhava was known as a yogi and Yeshe Tsogyal as a dakini. Miranda Shaw, associate professor of religion at University of Richmond, said in an interview in 1995, “In Sanskrit there is only one word, Dakini. There are only female Dakinis… there is no male Dakini. It is an impossibility and a contradiction in terms.”[19] Whereas Jan Willis in the chapter Ḑākinī; Some Comments on Its Nature and Meaningpoints out that “”she” is not “female”. Though the ḍākinī assuredly most often appears in female form… this is but one of the myriad of ways Absolute Insight chooses to make manifest its facticity”.[20]

However, Tibetan Lamas trained in the Gelug school, such as Sermey Khensur Lobsang Tharchin[21] and those of the Karma Kagyu school such as Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche,[23] write freely of “dakas and dakinis”. Thubten Yeshe clarifies their meaning: “what are dakas and dakinis? Simply speaking they are males and females who possess advanced experiences of tantric transformation and control and are therefore able to increase the blissful wisdom of a highly qualified practioner”.[24]

Breath of Fire Orgasm Exercise

April 10, 2013

How To Do The Breath of Fire Orgasm Exercise:

Lie comfortably on your back, with your knees up and your feet flat on the floor. Keep your spine straight. Don’t use a pillow.

Relax your jaw. Yawn. Keep the back of your throat open.
Breathe in through your nose and exhale through your mouth. If you’re not comfortable breathing in through your nose, feel free to breathe in and out through your mouth. The important thing is to take in as much air as possible in a relaxed manner.
Think of your breath as a circle, with no pause between the inhale and the exhale. Don’t force the exhale.
As you inhale, let your belly fill up like a balloon. As you exhale, flatten your lower back to the ground. This rocking motion helps to move sexual energy.

Add Kegels. Most people like to squeeze on the exhale, but do what feels right for you.

Now, use your mind and your breath to pull energy into your perineum (the area between your genitals and your anus, also known as the Root Chakra.) Remember, energy easily follows thought. You do not have to push and pull the energy; all you have to do is focus on the chakra you are breathing into and the breath will follow. You may find it helpful to place your hands on the chakra into which you are breathing.
Now, inhale your energy up to the sex center (lower belly, at the Second Chakra). Exhale, circulating the energy back down to the perineum. Continue until your sex center feels charged up, lit up, bigger, or more alive. Trust yourself; you’ll know when it is charged. You will feel that you’re ready to move on, or it will feel as if the energy is moving up by itself.
Now, breathe energy from your sex center (Second Chakra) into your solar plexus, at the Third Chakra. It’s located below your diaphragm and above your belly button. Keep rocking and Kegeling. Continue until this area is well charged up.
Keep breathing! By now you may (or may not) be feeling some of the physical or emotional effects of the Firebreath Orgasm.
The next breath circle is from your solar plexus (Third Chakra) and heart center (Fourth Chakra).
The next circle is from your heart center (Fourth Chakra) to your throat (Fifth Chakra). By the time the energy reaches your throat you’ll probably want to make some sounds. If sighs or sounds haven’t happened naturally yet, it’s important to vocalize them at this point. It will help the energy move up.
By now, the energy may or may not be moving up the chakras on its own. If it is, just keep breathing the connected breath; you can stop visualizing the circles. If the energy is not yet moving on its own, your next circle is from throat (Fifth Chakra) to The Third Eye (the middle of your forehead-the Sixth Chakra). Roll your eyes up (closed) as though you can see out the top of your head; it will help the energy rise.
The last circle is from the The Third Eye to the crown (just above the top of your head-the Seventh Chakra).
Remember: By the time you reach these higher circles, the energy will most likely be flowing on its own. Just keep breathing and you will feel yourself moving rapidly into an orgasmic state.

Helpful Hints

If at any point in the process you feel that you have lost the plot and aren’t feeling anything, don’t get discouraged, and don’t think you’re doing something wrong. Energy levels may rise and fall. Just return to the level where the energy seems to have settled and start again from there. Or, go all the way back to the Root Chakra and pull energy from there directly into whichever higher chakra you’re trying to energize.
Stay focused on your breath circles by using your hands to touch the chakras you’re breathing into. Or, move your hands in small circles, as if lifting the energy up with each inhalation.
Raise the pitch of your voice on your exhalations as you move the energy up each chakra.
This is particularly true as you circle energy in the higher chakras.

Remember: Do not be alarmed if you experience lightheadedness, dizziness, or tingling sensations or spasms and constrictions in your hands and feet. These effects are only temporary. Take slow, deep breaths. The symptoms should pass in a short time. If you
experience these symptoms, it may mean you are trying too hard. Ease up!

What is Tantra?

April 9, 2013

Tantra has been one of the most neglected branches of Indian spiritual studies despite the considerable number of texts devoted to this practice, which dates back to the 5th-9th century AD.
Many people still consider tantra to be full of obscenities and unfit for people of good taste. It is also often accused of being a kind of black magic. However, in reality, tantra is one of the most important Indian traditions, representing the practical aspect of the Vedic tradition.

The religious attitude of the tantriks is fundamentally the same as that of the Vedic followers. It is believed that the tantra tradition is a part of the main Vedic tree. The more vigorous aspects of Vedic religion were continued and developed in the tantras. Generally tantriks worship either Goddess Shakti or Lord Shiva.

The Meaning of “Tantra”

The word “tantra” is derived from the combination of two words “tattva” and “mantra”. “Tattva” means the science of cosmic principles, while “mantra” refers to the science of mystic sound and vibrations. Tantra therefore is the application of cosmic sciences with a view to attain spiritual ascendancy. In another sense, tantra also means the scripture by which the light of knowledge is spread: Tanyate vistaryate jnanam anemna iti tantram.

There are essentially two schools of Indian scriptures – “Agama” and “Nigama”. Agamas are those which are revelations while Nigama are the traditions. Tantra is an Agama and hence it is called “srutishakhavisesah”, which means it is a branch of the Vedas.

Tantric Scriptures

The main deities worshipped are Shiva and Shakti. In tantra there is a great significance of “bali” or animal sacrifices. The most vigorous aspects of Vedic traditions evolved as an esoteric system of knowledge in the Tantras. The Atharva Veda is considered to be one of the prime tantrik scriptures.

Types & Terminology

There are 18 “Agamas”, which are also referred to as Shiva tantras, and they are ritualistic in character. There are three distinct tantrik traditions – Dakshina, Vama and Madhyama. They represent the three “shaktis” or powers of Shiva and are characterised by the three “gunas” or qualities – “sattva”, “rajas” and “tamas”. The Dakshina tradition, characterised by the “sattva” branch of tantra is essentially for good purpose. The Madhyama, characterised by “rajas” is of mixed nature, while the Vama, characterised by “tamas” is the most impure form of tantra.

Rustic Tantriks

In Indian villages, tantriks are still not quite hard to find. Many of them help the villagers solve their problems. Every person who has lived in the villages or has spent his childhood there, has a story to tell. What is so easily believed in the villages might appear illogical and unscientific to the rational urban mind, but these phenomena are realities of life.

Desire for Worldly Pleasures

Tantra is different from other traditions because it takes the whole person, and his/her worldly desires into account. Other spiritual traditions ordinarily teach that desire for material pleasures and spiritual aspirations are mutually exclusive, setting the stage for an endless internal struggle. Although most people are drawn into spiritual beliefs and practices, they have a natural urge to fulfill their desires. With no way to reconcile these two impulses, they fall prey to guilt and self-condemnation or become hypocritical. Tantra offers an alternative path.

The Tantrik Approach To Life

The tantrik approach to life avoids this pitfall. Tantra itself means “to weave, to expand, and to spread”, and according to tantrik masters, the fabric of life can provide true and ever-lasting fulfillment only when all the threads are woven according to the pattern designated by nature. When we are born, life naturally forms itself around that pattern. But as we grow, our ignorance, desire, attachment, fear, and false images of others and ourselves tangle and tear the threads, disfiguring the fabric. Tantra “sadhana” or practice reweaves the fabric, and restores the original pattern. This path is systematic and comprehensive. The profound science and practices pertaining to hatha yoga, pranayama, mudras, rituals, kundalini yoga, nada yoga, mantra, mandala, visualization of dieties, alchemy, ayurveda, astrology, and hundreds of esoteric practices for generating worldly and spiritual prosperity blend perfectly in the tantrik disciplines.(more…)

Recommended Books/CDs/DVDs/Ritual Objects for Practicing TANTRA!

April 4, 2013

The following are books, CDs, DVDs, etc. for the study and practice of TANTRA, which I most highly recommend!!!

Tantric Ethics
Tantra, or Vajrayana, Buddhism is a set of esoteric practices that involve mantra recitation and complex visualizations. Tantra constitutes the fabric of a Tibetan Buddhist’s daily practice, but no practice of tantra can be successful without adherence to the tantric precepts, the highest of three complementary sets of vows.more »$16.95On Sale $15.25*

Introduction to Tantra
Introduction to Tantra is the best available clarification of a subject that is often misunderstood. This new edition of this classic text includes a new foreword by Philip Glass and a new cover design, but leaves untouched Lama Yeshe’s excellent original text, edited by Jonathan Landaw.more »$16.95On Sale $15.25*

Principles of Buddhist Tantra
Kirti Tsenshap Rinpoché was a renowned teacher of Tibetan Buddhism with students worldwide. Revered as a teacher by even the Dalai Lama, he was known especially as a master of Buddhist tantra, the powerful esoteric methods for attaining enlightenment swiftly. The teachings in this book are a singular record of his deep learning in that field.more »$24.95On Sale $21.20*

Tantric Techniques
Deity yoga is the meditative practice of imagining oneself as an ideal being fully endowed with compassion, wisdom, and her resultant altruistic activities. The idea is that by imagining being a buddha, one gets closer to actually achieving buddhahood. Tantric Techniques will give the reader a dynamic sense of the potential of the human mind for self-transformation through step-by-step use of the imagination.more »$32.95On Sale $29.65*

Highest Yoga Tantra
Daniel Cozort’s extraordinary book clearly outlines and discusses the methods for transforming both body and mind through the highest forms of tantric practice. Part One discusses the practices common to sutra and tantra. Part Two presents the generation stage of highest yoga tantra. Part Three covers the entirety of the completion stage yogas. And Part Four compares the Kalachakra and Guhyasamaja stages of completion.more »$18.95On Sale $17.25*

Deity Yoga in Action and Performance Tantras
The sequel to Tantra in Tibet, Deity Yoga describes the profound process of meditation in Action and Performance tantras, the basis of higher tantric practices. In addition to explaining the meditative rites of deity yoga, it provides the second and third parts of the Great Exposition of Secret Mantra by Tsong-ka-pa, which detail special deity yoga techniques for developing the heart, mind and physical form of a buddha.more »$19.95On Sale $17.95*

A Practice of Padmasambhava: Essential Instructions on the Path to Awakening
The Indian master Padmasambhava occupies a special place in the hearts of practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism. By bringing tantric Buddhism to Tibet from India he inspired a movement of awakening that for centuries has brought countless practitioners to spiritual fulfillment. A Practice of Padmasambhava presents two practical and compelling works related to a visualization and mantra practice of Padmasambhava.more »$19.95On Sale $18.25*

Universal Love:
The Yoga Method of Buddha Maitreya
Lama Yeshe gave a series of talks about Maitreya Buddha and instructions on the yoga method of Maitreya in 1981 at Maitreya Instituut in the Netherlands. Universal Love is a beautiful collection of these teachings dedicated to cultivating loving-kindness and a tender heart.more »$15.00On Sale $13.80*

View All Books
The Foundation Store has books that explore Meditation, Practices, Buddhism in general, Discovering Buddhism at Home titles, and a growing library of books written by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and a collection of books by and about Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Lama Thubten Yeshe.more »

Discovering Buddhism –
Introduction to Tantra – Module Thirteen
Learn the meaning of tantra, how tantra works, and why it is a powerful form of practice if done with the right foundation of understanding and practice. Get a broad overview of the distinction between sutra and tantra, the four classes of tantra and the meaning of deity yoga.more »$50.00On Sale $35.00*

Six-Session Guru Yoga with commentary
by Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Within the Gelug tradition, practicing the Six-Session Guru Yoga is a daily commitment for anyone who has received a highest yoga tantra empowerment. This booklet provides texts of the full Six-Session Guru Yoga, the abbreviated version, and commentary from Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the benefits of the practice and the samayas of the five buddha families.more »$18.50On Sale $12.80*

Chod: Cutting Through the Ego
This practice strikes right at the heart of the selfish attitude. Rather than defend ourselves from potential harm-givers, here, we imagine offering our treasured bodies to those who would seek to harm us. We also give away body and mind to satisfy the needs of all beings. This forces the practitioner to examine carefully how we hold the “I” and thus presents a supreme opportunity to develop both wisdom and compassion simultaneously.more »$9.00On Sale $6.80*

Vajrayogini –
The Intermediate Practices of Vajrayogini
This volume makes available the complete self-empowerment ritual, together with practice and set-up instructions. In addition, the self-empowerment of Vajrayogini is simple to perform, compared with the self-initiation rites of many other Maha-anuttara Yoga Tantra deities. For this reason, it is highly appropriate for practitioners in these degenerate times, when time is short and the ease of practice can greatly help us to keep our tantric commitments.more »$40.00On Sale $32.00*

Introduction to Tantra: Lama Yeshe – DVD
In 1980, in California, Lama Yeshe gave a commentary to the Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig) yoga method. This video is Lama’s introduction to that teaching series and constitutes a wonderful explanation of the fundamentals of tantric practice.more »$15.00On Sale $12.75*

Chod – Cutting Through the Ego – CD
Chod is known as Dedicating the Illusory Body to Accumulate Merit, Bringing Quick Results in the Practice of Method and Wisdom – the Shared Riches of the Ganden Lineage Practitioners. This version is beautifully chanted by the late Lama Thubten Yeshe.more »$16.00On Sale $10.00*

Chod – Dedicating the Illusory Body – CD
An original recording of the complete Chöd practice according to Pabongkha Rinpoche’s text Dedicating the Illusory Body. Chanted by Geshe Jamyang and senior nuns from the Kopan Nunnery, Nepal.more »$15.00On Sale $12.00*

Mini Inner Offering Set (Kapala) – Brass
Kapalas are used mainly for higher tantric meditation to achieve a transcendental state of mind and also as an offering bowl on the altar. The kapala is made in the form of a skull. In Tibetan monasteries it is used symbolically to hold bread or dough cakes, torma, and wine.Made by Nepalese Family. Each set is constructed of 2 pieces: bowl and top. Size: 1.5 wide x 2 Inch tall.more »$28.80On Sale $22.00*

Brass Bumpa Vase With Spout
The bumpa is a ritual vase with a spout used in Tibetan Buddhist rituals and empowerments. It is understood to be, in some contexts, the vessel or the expanse of the Universe.This Brass Bumpa Vase displays quality of craftsmanship with beautiful relief work. Made by Nepalese family. Measurements: aprox. 7 tall 4 Inch wide.more »$45.00On Sale $38.25*

Mahakala Prayer Flags
Mahakala prayer flags protect the Dharma practitioner from all outer and inner hindrances to one’s Dharma practice. Each flag measures 12 x 12 Inch.Prayer flags can be hung either horizontally on the eaves of a building or fastened vertically to posts. They can also be hung indoors to increase spiritual atmosphere.more »$12.50On Sale $9.90*

Wisdom of the Kadam Masters
The phrase “Kadam masters” evokes for many Tibetans a sense of a spiritual golden age – the image of a community of wise yet simple monks devoted to a life of mental cultivation. These 11th- and 12th-century masters were particularly famed for their pithy spiritual sayings that captured essential teachings in digestible bites.more »$16.95